[Gpdd] New member

Heather Hairston h_anne_h at hotmail.com
Fri Mar 17 16:20:54 EST 2006


Hi! Assuming I submit this correctly - wanted to post a note to let you all 
know I have been enjoying your discussions (and getting emotional over your 
losses) for several days now.
Our family members are ALL slaves to 4 guinea pigs: Zeke, Ginger, Pig and 
Pepper.  I found your forum while trying to research some info to help 
Ginger.  She is about 2 - 2 1/2 yrs old, very overweight (3 lbs 10 oz 
yesterday), and went blind suddenly a couple of months ago... I'm fairly 
sure she's diabetic - I took her to the vet the same week her bilateral 
cateracts showed up - but the vet begs to differ.  She hadn't eaten for a 
couple of hours, and when the vet checked her blood sugar, it was 150, which 
seemed high enough to me to maybe monitor it for a while (?) She urinates 
constantly, and drinks 2 regular sized sippy bottles of water per day, if 
not more! Anyway, no help there, so have been checking into the little bit 
of info I can find, trying to avoid carbs, etc in her diet - a little afraid 
to go vet hunting; the one I took her to was supposed to have a lot of 
experience with small animals, but said she'd "never hear of a guinea pig 
with diabetes".  Phooey.
Everybody else seems happy and healthy.  Zeke (1 yr old calico-colored 
Abyssian) is kind of a spoiled brat and won't get along with ANY other pigs, 
so has to live all by himself in our room, and only gets to play with the 
other pigs for a few minutes at a time before all heck breaks loose.  He 
chatters his teeth at us when we slaves are slow bringing the veggies. 
Pepper (salt & pepper silky, I think) is our youngest (about 4 mos.), and 
she has the sweetest personality.  Pig is at least 4 yrs old, white w/pink 
eyes, lots of cowlicks, Elvis hair-do, (not sure of breed) - our first g.p.  
He is hands-down the smartest and most precocious; he gets to roam free, and 
patrols the house regularly, especially to make sure the girls are behaving. 
  My son taught him to stand up for treats, so when he gets the urge or 
hears a bag, he barrels right up to your feet and stands on his hind legs.
That's probably enough for now - I tend to be "long-winded" on a keyboard :) 
  Would be thrilled with any comments or experiences that could help with 
caring for Ginger.
Have a great day!
Heather






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